Wall of Shame

We make every effort to ensure our blog is both interesting and informative. We hope it shows through in a tone that blends a mix of being approachable but also slightly professional. Informative but at times informal. Today we're having a little bit of fun, almost like pub stories for network nerds. To be fair we'll still be approachable, professional informative and informal but today's post is a show and tell.

Welcome to the Wall of Shame.Other than the picture of the wall itself, these are real images taken from real installations. For each, we'll delve into a brief discussion on what's wrong and why. If your install looks like these images then you too may have a problem.

Looking back at these images I had almost forgotten there was once an era where every small business was running their network with blue box Netgear equipment because metal box = professional and they happened to stock it at Office Works. I'll say sorry in advance for some of the poor image quality and odd image ratios. This is almost a trip down memory lane for the ever evolving quality of phone cameras. FINALLY it goes without saying: no customer names will be disclosed, some images have been cropped / part pixelated to protect customer privacy.

Contestant No.1

The first candidate for our wall of shame is the network switches shoved behind the big office printer. These are the core switches running this environment. In fairness:

1. It was a time before the wide adoption of network cabinets in small business environments
2. The internet was a little less of a critical service than it is now. That said the business network was critical in this instance.

So why is this a problem?

• Overheating: Trapped heat from both the printer and switch can cause network slowdowns and hardware failure.
• Blocked Access: Hiding the switch makes it difficult to reach for essential troubleshooting, restarts, or cable changes.
• Messy Cabling: This setup encourages tangled wires (I mean look at that!), making it a headache to manage connections or add new devices.
• Tricky Expansion: More switching capacity requires more wall space, where does it end?
• Neglected Maintenance: Being "out of sight, out of mind" means dust buildup and other maintenance tasks are easily forgotten. Further if a new person turns up to maintain the network, they have to go on an adventure to find the switches.

Contestant No.2

Messy cabling aside, this setup isn't actually bad at all. We may have more blue boxes but we have a network cabinet, clearly identified ports (server room, board room, etc..) and some effort has been made to keep things neat with cables that are appropriate lengths. I'm actually taking this image out of context to make a point.

So why is this a problem?

Back when this image was taken this setup wasn't a problem whatsoever. If your network looks like this today however, you're running on hardware that's no longer supported making your business susceptible to compromise. Not to mention that the risk of hardware failure increases over time. I don't advocate changing things just for the sake of it, but a reasonable hardware depreciation and lifecycle strategy MUST be part of your business, even if you're a small business.

Contestant No.3

I PROMISE this is not an Internet meme image. I took this photo. I stood there.

So why is this a problem?

I kind of feel this one is self explanatory, but here's an exhaustive list of why letting your cabling get to this point is a REALLY bad idea:

• Increases Downtime: Tracing a single faulty cable in a tangled mess can take hours instead of seconds, turning minor fixes into major outages.
• Blocks Airflow & Causes Overheating: The dense web of cables obstructs proper airflow, trapping heat. This can cause switches and servers to overheat, leading to poor performance and permanent hardware damage.
• Creates Accidental Outages: When adding or removing a cable, it's incredibly easy to snag and disconnect an unrelated, critical system, accidentally taking a server or an entire department offline.
• Hinders Upgrades and Maintenance: Adding new equipment or replacing a faulty switch becomes a high-risk, time-consuming nightmare instead of a simple, routine task.
• Damages Cables & Degrades Performance: The weight, pressure, and sharp bends within the tangle can damage the cables themselves, leading to poor signal quality, data errors, and slower network speeds.
• Looks Unprofessional: A messy rack signals a lack of care and professionalism in your IT infrastructure, which can erode confidence from both employees and clients.

If the above isn't bad enough, fixing this mess took 2 network engineers working for 24 hours over the weekend to trace, document and fix everything. Overtime and penalty rates ++, the engineers were quite happy to work that weekend.

Contestant No.4

At first glance this one doesn't look too bad, dust and a dead moth aside: we're in a network cabinet, cables look relatively neat. We've already seen worse, so what gives? Take a look closer. From top to bottom:

• A Ubiquiti edgerouter;
• A Netgear switch - actually the same model as contestant # 2;
• What appears to be a Cisco Meraki switch;
• A HP procurve switch; and
• Below the HP, I believe that's a Cisco catalyst switch.

If I'm remembering correctly this network was built with a procurement philosophy of "what's cheapest and meets my exact needs" rather than considering product families.

So why is this a problem?

• Fragmented Management: Juggling different interfaces for each brand is inefficient and increases the risk of errors.
• Vendor Finger-Pointing: Brands blame each other during outages, delaying fixes and leaving you stranded.
• Incompatible Features: Advanced performance and security features don't work between brands, limiting your network's capabilities.
• Inconsistent Performance: Mixed hardware creates unpredictable speeds and network bottlenecks for users.
• Increased Security Risks: Tracking updates across multiple vendors is complex, making it easy to miss a critical security patch.
• Diluted Expertise: Staff knowledge is spread thin across many systems instead of achieving mastery of a single platform.

I'd even go as far as insisting it's often better to stick in a family and miss some features than it is to go feature shopping and create an inconsistent mess.

Contestant No.5

Contestant No 5 comes from a hotel. The first issue is that we weren't here to maintain this cabinet, it was just left unlocked for the public to access. Then looking in we noticed:

• A network switch that's not bolted into the cabinet
• A random cabling that's going into undocumented ports
• Wifi gear inside the metal cabinet
• Management interface IP addresses written on the hardware (blurred out in this image)

So why is this a problem?

While it's possible to come up with a list for each issue, let's just address the big problem with each one:

• Physical Instability & Damage: An unbolted switch can slide or fall, straining connections, and risking complete failure of it and the what it's connected to if it drops. Not to mention this was in a public space in a hotel, the risk of tampering of even theft is quite high.
• Impossible to Troubleshoot: Undocumented cables make tracing faults a guessing game. You don't know what a port does, so you can't fix issues or make changes without risking an unknown outage.
• Blocks Wi-Fi Signal: A metal cabinet acts as a Faraday cage, which severely weakens or completely blocks radio signals, resulting in terrible wireless performance.
• Major Security Flaw: Writing IP addresses on hardware gives any unauthorised person with physical access (anyone in the hotel!) a direct starting point to attack your network's management plane.

Contestant No.6

This next one isn't from a customer site, it was actually something I noticed out on holiday - camping to be exact. The came site had a WiFi network blanketing the whole camp ground. To make this work they had a whole heap of point-to-point WiFi access points (like the one photographed above) to bring WiFi into the cabins. So far this is all cool. The problem was actually what I noticed below the outdoor Access Point:

Below each one was a weatherproof box that wasn't quite large enough for the gear inside it. You can't see in the above image unfortunately, but it's ajar. That weatherproof enclosure isn't very weatherproof.

So why is this a problem?

I really hope I don't need to explain why this is a problem. That said, here's my list:

• Fire & Short Circuit Risk: Water getting into powered electronics is a direct path to short circuits, equipment damage, and electrical fires.
• Guaranteed Corrosion & Failure: Moisture will corrode the internal circuits and ports, ensuring the equipment will eventually fail.
• Insect-Caused Outages: Pests seeking shelter will build nests that trap moisture and cause short circuits, leading to unpredictable faults.
• Lethal Shock Hazard: The entire unit can become electrified by moisture, posing a deadly shock risk to anyone who touches it.
• Degraded Network Performance: Long before total failure, corrosion will cause slow speeds, packet loss, and random disconnects.
• Voids Warranty & Insurance: No manufacturer or insurer will cover damage caused by such a negligent and improper installation.

Contestant No.7

Trying to bring this list back home - Contestant 7 is me! Again context is key here, but I'm trying to make a point. The access point is installed in a corner near walls. This is a no-no. Or at least a compromise that should only be made consciously. In my case it was conscious:

1. This is at home
2. My WiFi environment at home is so overkill this setup isn't creating a coverage problem
3. This was the only "wife approved" solution to getting an access point into the living room. No middle of the ceiling installations at home.

So why is this a problem?

As I hinted at, in a home environment this may be a totally acceptable compromise. In an office environment, don't do this! Your access points should be in the middle of open space, ideally concentrated around high density and high traffic locations. Here's why:

• Wasted Wi-Fi Signal: You're blasting half the signal directly into the wall structure, where it's completely useless to users.
• Creates Inevitable Dead Zones: Wasting signal guarantees that areas of the office will have an unreliable or non-existent connection.
• Causes Interference Slowdowns: Signal reflecting off the nearby walls corrupts data and slows down the network for everyone. Especially in a high-traffic office environment.
• Overloads the AP: A single device is forced to work much harder from a disadvantaged position, degrading performance for all users connected to it.
• Prevents Proper Roaming: Mobile devices may "cling" to the weak, poorly-placed signal instead of switching to a better one, causing a frustrating user experience.
• Wasted Hardware Investment: You are crippling the device's intended 360-degree performance, meaning you paid for coverage you aren't actually getting.

Conclusion

Have your own stories to share? Feel free to reach out to us, we'd love to hear from you.

As always, if you need assistance dealing with your own wall of shame entry, you can always reach out to AFSecure for help.